Fackham Hall Review – A Brisk, Witty Takeoff on Downton Which Is Delightfully Lightweight.
It could be the sense of uncertain days in the air: following a long period of quiet, the comedic send-up is enjoying a comeback. The past few months saw the rebirth of this unserious film style, which, in its finest form, lampoons the self-importance of excessively solemn genre with a flood of pitched clichés, physical comedy, and stupid-clever puns.
Unserious periods, so it goes, beget self-awarely frivolous, laugh-filled, pleasantly insubstantial fun.
A Recent Addition in This Absurd Wave
The newest of these goofy parodies comes in the form of Fackham Hall, a takeoff on the British period drama that needles the highly satirizable pretensions of opulent UK historical series. Co-written by UK-Irish comic Jimmy Carr and helmed by Jim O'Hanlon, the film has a wealth of material to work with and exploits every bit of it.
Starting with a absurd opening to a ludicrous finish, this enjoyable silver-spoon romp packs each of its 97 minutes with puns and routines running the gamut from the juvenile up to the truly humorous.
A Send-Up of Upstairs, Downstairs
Much like Downton, Fackham Hall offers a pastiche of extremely pompous the nobility and excessively servile help. The plot centers on the hapless Lord Davenport (brought to life by a wonderfully pretentious Damian Lewis) and his literature-hating wife, Lady Davenport (Katherine Waterston). Having lost their male heirs in various calamitous events, their plans now rest on finding matches for their daughters.
One daughter, Poppy (Emma Laird), has accomplished the family goal of a promise to marry the suitable kinsman, Archibald (a wonderfully unctuous Tom Felton). However once she withdraws, the pressure falls upon the unattached elder sister, Rose (Thomasin McKenzie), considered a spinster of a woman" and who harbors unladylike beliefs about female autonomy.
The Film's Humor Succeeds
The spoof is significantly more successful when joking about the stifling expectations forced upon early 20th-century women – an area typically treated for self-serious drama. The archetype of proper, coveted femininity supplies the richest punching bags.
The narrative thread, as is fitting for a deliberately silly spoof, takes a back seat to the gags. The co-writer delivers them maintaining a pleasantly funny clip. There is a murder, a farcical probe, and an illicit love affair between the plucky pickpocket Eric Noone (Ben Radcliffe) and Rose.
A Note on Lighthearted Fun
The entire affair is in the spirit of playful comedy, however, this approach imposes restrictions. The amplified silliness inherent to parody may tire quickly, and the mileage on this particular variety diminishes somewhere between sketch and feature.
At a certain point, one may desire to return to stories with (very slight) reason. But, one must respect a genuine dedication to the craft. In an age where we might to distract ourselves unto oblivion, it's preferable to find the humor in it.
